Leumi Reports First-Quarter 2019 Net Income of NIS 1,092 Million ($301 million) and 12.7% Return on Equity

TEL AVIV, Israel, May 27, 2019 /PRNewswire/ --

- Net income in the first quarter of 2019 reached NIS 1,092 million ($301 million), compared with NIS 730 million ($201 million) in the same period last year - a 50% year-over-year increase.

- Return on equity in the first quarter of 2019 was 12.7% (annualized), compared with 9.0% in the same period last year. Excluding the effect of the sale of Leumi Card, the return on equity in the first quarter was 10.1%, compared with 8.6% in the same period last year.

- Common Equity Tier 1 capital ratio as at March 31, 2019 was 11.65%, and the total capital ratio reached 15.07%.

- Efficiency ratio continues to improve - A 53% ratio in the first quarter of 2019, compared with 63.8% in the same period last year. Excluding the effect of the sale of Leumi Card, the efficiency ratio in the first quarter of 2019 was 57.9%, compared with 63.7% in the same period last year.

- Leumi's credit portfolio continues to be of the highest quality in the Israeli banking system - credit loss expenses in the first quarter of 2019 were negligible (0.03%), compared to 0.15% in the same period last year (excluding Leumi Card).

- Dividends and buybacks - The Bank's Board of Directors approved a dividend distribution policy of 40% of the net income in the first quarter of 2019, totaling NIS 437 million ($120 million). Furthermore, the Bank's Board of Directors approved an additional share buyback plan of NIS 700 million ($193 million).

- Net interest income in the first quarter of 2019, excluding Leumi Card, was up by NIS 183 million ($50.4 million) compared with the same period last year, a 9.4% increase.

- Total operating and other expenses in the first quarter of 2019, excluding Leumi Card, were up by NIS 141 million ($38.8 million) compared with the same period last year, a 7.8% increase. The increase mainly arose from a bonus granted to employees in respect of the Bank's strong annual results in 2018.

An Improvement in Balance Sheet Parameters:

- Shareholders' equity was NIS 35.9 billion ($9.9 billion) as at March 31, 2019, compared with NIS 33.6 billion ($9.3 billion) as at March 31, 2018.

- Net credit to the public was NIS 277.1 billion ($76.3 billion) as at March 31, 2019, compared with NIS 263.3 billion ($72.5 billion) as at March 31, 2018 (excluding Leumi Card). The increase is mainly due to mortgage, middle-market and corporate loans.

- Deposits by the Public reached NIS 363.6 billion ($100.1 billion) as at March 31, 2019, compared with NIS 362.5 billion ($99.8 billion) as at March 31, 2018 (excluding Leumi Card).

- Leverage ratio as at March 31, 2019 was 7.32%, compared to the 6% minimum required by the Bank of Israel.

- Liquidity coverage ratio as at March 31, 2019 was 129%, compared to the 100% minimum required by the Bank of Israel.


         
              
             Leumi Group - Principal Data from the Financial Statements


         
              
             Profit and Profitability (in NIS millions)

    ---



                                                       For the year ended March 31      Change in %          December 31

                                                                                                    ---

        
          
              2019               2018              2018

                ---                                            ---

          Net interest
           income                           2,120             2,006               5.7                  8,890

                                                                                                      ---

          Credit loss
           expenses                          (18)              130                                     519

                                                                                                      ---

          Non-interest
           income                           1,555             1,092              42.4                  4,871

                                                                                                      ---

          Operating and
           other expenses                   1,946             1,976             (1.5)                 8,337

                                                                                                      ---

          Profit before
           taxes                            1,747               992              76.1                  4,905

                                                                                                      ---

          Provision for
           taxes                              621               262        
            +                 1,619

                                                                                                      ---

          Profit after taxes                1,126               730              54.2                  3,286

                                                                                                      ---

          The Bank's share
           in profits of
           companies
           included on
           equity basis                      (24)               10                                      36

                                                                                                      ---

          Net income
           attributed to
           non-controlling
           interests                         (10)             (10)                                   (65)

                                                                                                      ---

          Net income
           attributed to
           shareholders of
           the banking
           corporation                      1,092               730              49.6                  3,257

                                                                                                      ---

          Return on equity
           (%)                              12.7               9.0                                     9.5

                                                                                                      ---

          Earnings per share
           (NIS)                             0.73              0.48                                    2.15

                                                                                                      ---



       
                
                  Development of Balance Sheet Items (in NIS millions)

    ---





                                                                                  As at March 31                           December 31

                                                                                                                   ---

                          
              
                2019         2018            2018

                                                   ---


       Net credit to the public (a)                        277,057         263,331                                271,173

                                                                                                                     ---


       Deposits by the public (a)                          363,587         362,479                                364,591

                                                                                                                     ---


       Shareholders' equity                                 35,940          33,565                                 35,305

                                                                                                                     ---


       Total assets                                        456,198         450,568                                460,657

                                                                                                                     ---



        a) Excluding the balances for Leumi Card, which have been classified as held-for-sale assets and liabilities since
         the balance sheet as at March 31, 2018.


       
                
                  Principal Financial Ratios (%)

    ---

                                                     As at March 31                         December 31

                                                                                    ---


       
                2019       2018            2018

                      ---

        Net credit
         to the
         public to
         total
         assets
         (a)                    60.7            58.4                                   58.9

                                                                                      ---

        Deposits
         by the
         public to
         total
         assets
         (b)                    79.7            80.4                                   79.1

                                                                                      ---

        Total
         equity to
         risk
         assets                15.07           14.32                                  14.54

                                                                                      ---

        Total Tier
         1 equity
         to risk
         assets                11.65           11.11                                  11.07

                                                                                      ---

        Leverage
         ratio                  7.32            6.89                                   7.05

                                                                                      ---

        Liquidity
         coverage
         ratio                   129             122                                    121

                                                                                      ---



        (a) Excluding the credit for Leumi Card (comparative results), which have been
         classified as held-for-sale assets and liabilities since the balance sheet as
         at March 31, 2018.

        (b) Excluding the deposits for Leumi Card (comparative results), which have been
         classified as held-for-sale assets and liabilities since the balance sheet as
         at March 31, 2018.

        The data in this press release has been converted into US dollars solely for
         convenience purposes, at the representative exchange rate published by the Bank
         of Israel on March 31, 2019, NIS 3.632.

Conference Call Details:

A conference call to discuss the results will be held today at 5 PM (Israel); 3 PM (UK); 10:00 AM (ET).

It is recommended to connect to the link at least 10 minutes prior to the beginning of the call. An archived recording will be available on the Leumi website one business day after the call ends.

Conference Call Dial-in Details (no passcode required):

Israel 03-9180609
UK 0-800-917-5108
US & Canada 1-888-668-9141
All other locations +972-3-918-0609

The conference call does not replace the latest periodic/quarterly reports in which full information is contained, including forward-looking information, as defined in the Israeli Securities Law, and set out in the aforementioned reports.

For more information visit www.leumi.co.il or contact
Daphna Golden
VP, Head of Investor Relations
Daphna.Golden@bankleumi.co.il

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SOURCE Bank Leumi